Refeeds 101 | How to Do a Carb Refeed

Maybe one of the most controversial topics in the health and fitness industry is that of refeeds. Some avoid them like the plague whilst others think it’s Christmas come early. All across the internet you can see arguments raging back and forth with those for and against. In the last few years add in proponents of If It Fits Your Macros (IIFYM) vs “Clean” Eaters and you're left in a minefield.

In this article I aim to dispel a few myths and look at the pros/cons of refeeds, why they are used, when and how to do them right.

What is a Refeed?

Refeeds are very much tailored to the individual they can be a meal or meals or even a window of time (I’ve seen periods of 3 – 48 hours stated) of carbohydrate heavy foods. The term refeed is very rarely used when discussing an individual who isn’t dieting or looking to lose fat.

Why Are Refeeds Used?

Your body is a survival unit. If you look to “starve” it or lose weight for an extended period of time your body will look to “make do” with its energy input (the amount you eat) by down regulating hormones in order to slow your metabolism and stop this weight loss. One of the key hormones that decreases as you diet down for weeks and weeks is leptin.

Leptin regulates both your hunger and your metabolism. As leptin levels drop, your thyroid hormones will also drop bringing about a reduction in your metabolism. Ghrelin is what stimulates hunger and levels of Ghrelin will increase as leptin decreases. Ever get extreme hunger pangs when dieting? That’s Ghrelin telling you to eat more.

The reason for a refeed is to increase leptin levels therefore boosting the metabolism back up, decreasing hunger, therefore allowing fat burning and weight loss to continue.